Tags
Dazy, Deadlights, Gift Horse, Kurt Baker, Langhorne Slim, Marc Valentine, Mod Lang, Motorists, School Book Depository, silk daisys, Sloan, Tad Overbaugh, The Maureens, The Pozers, The Pretty Flowers, The Rubs, The Sylvia Platters, Together Pangea, Tom Emlyn, Uni Boys, Vegas with Randolph
Sometimes I imagine a large radio tower blasting our choice singles around the planet. It’s definitely what the world needs now. A little bit of the carefree, some heart-fluttering excitement, perhaps even a hint of inspiration. Take some time out from world affairs and your personal troubles to check out this suite of specially curated should-be hits. You’ll be glad you did.
Let’s launch with something that conjures a bit of early Go Go’s but with a breathy male vocal. The Sylvia Platters give us this and more with “Tactical Lunchbox.” There’s even a B52s organ break. Jangle deficiency is a serious ailment, particularly in these dour winter months. Motorists have just the remedy with “Frogman.” Those luscious guitar tones are gonna make anybody feel better. The same critics who can’t say enough good things about bands like The Lemon Twigs pause when a new Uni Boys single comes on. As they should. These renaissance new wave popsters have done it again with “I Don’t Want to Dream Anymore.” Somebody pinch me, it must be 1979 again. Jeff Shelton’s Deadlights take us back to the 1980s with a faithful cover of House of Love on “Destroy the Heart.” Dig the drone. You can practically smell the smoke machine. Brisbane Australia’s Gift Horse get the jump on dad day with “Fathers.” The song has a muscular folk rock sensibility, like the Byrds with a Marshall stack.
Dallas, Texas combo The Pozers step on the 10ccc pedal for their contribution to the International Pop Overthrow compilation album #26. The vocal swoops compete with a relentless poppy keyboard driving things to a cheery place. Langhorne Slim has been hanging around the roots scene for years but his new album The Dreamin’ Kind is something else. I mean, it is rootsy but it is so much more too. Listen to the tight pop articulation of the should-be single “On Fire.” It has the soulful poppy chops of an Aaron Lee Tasjan. It’s dancey, it’s heartfelt, its AM radio playable. Kurt Baker has been offering up Elvis Costello-ish pop-slathered rock for a while. “Undertow Afterglow” amps that influence even further than usual. The B-side cover of the McCartney/Costello composition “My Brave Face” is pretty special too. Detroit’s Mod Lang are building quite the buzz about the near imminent release of their debut long-player Borrowed Time. Early release single “TV Star” blasted some good time 1970s power pop vibes for sure but I’m digging the more Beatlesque “What I Can’t Have.” This is gonna be one hot album drop. silk daisys get the dream pop label but I’m hearing Darling Buds and Primitives. Sure, there’s shimmer all over their recordings but an essential guitar pop goodness emerges with clarity on “It’s a Laugh.”
Things rarely go sideways with Dazy for me. There’s something playful and seriously inventive about how their songs get put together. “Delusions of …” has a Sugar Ray vocal, some La’s guitars, and Beck production sensibility. Dutch outfit The Maureens revive a 1960s group vocals sound with folk and pop inflections and it’s all there again on their new single “Doing Fine.” And that means an album can’t be far behind. The organ opening Marc Valentine’s new single “NY UAP” is just so 1966 it hurts. In a good way. This is retro rock and roll that still sounds fresh today. Punk veterans Together Pangea are still turning it out. “Shattered” offers you grinding guitars and a shuffle beat that dance floors were made for. At first listen you might think Tom Emlyn’s “Starsick” has seen some poet press-ganged onto stage in front of a band playing a bit too fast. But as the song develops the words and music meld together in a frenetic kind of energy that is way cool.
I don’t really know where Växjö is. Somewhere in Sweden I take it. But given the latest single from that country’s School Book Depository I imagine there’s someone belting out their favourite song there. This band ace atmospheric pop singles and the current “Karaoke” is no exception. I love the lead guitar roll-out that launches Tad Overbaugh’s “Rearview.” It’s what pushes this ‘new country’ entry into something broader genre-wise. And that great guitar work continues throughout. Capitol city’s Vegas With Randolph get right back on the new album prep train floating an early effort with “Let’s Fool Around.” It’s a smooth pop rocking number in a manner similar to indie acts like Vanilla and the Zombies of the Stratosphere. And that’s good enough for me. Another Sloan album, another spate of rave reviews. That’s what the release of last year’s Based on a Best Seller produced. I loved it, not that band needed accolades from the likes of me. So I’ll just throw some light on the fab deep cut “Here We Go Again.” Nobody quite knocks it out of the park as reliably as these guys. Chicago’s The Rubs throw up something a bit different with their new song. “Starting All Over” sounds likes it has dropped right out of the 1970s pub rock scene. Only the wobbly guitar sound gives it a modern sheen.
It’s a wrap this time around with “Came Back Kicking” from The Pretty Flowers. This one has the oomph of something big. Like stadium singalong big. It’s the pre-release single from the band’s upcoming album Never Felt Bitter. Can’t wait to hear more.
Does the air seem lighter? I can’t tell I’m so riffed up on these radio-ready singles. And you don’t have to stop now. Click the links to keep the world away for just a little bit longer.
Photo “Union Station” courtesy Thomas Hawk Flikr collection.
What were the biggest hits that weren’t in 2017? Who were the biggest should-be stars? In our alternate universe here at Poprock Record, these guys were all over the charts, the chat shows, the scandal sheets, as well as memed all over Facebook, Snapchatted by the kids, and Instragrammed into oblivion. Jesus, they were so popular you are well and truly sick of them by now. But sadly for our poprock heroes, the universe is not just ours to define. In the world beyond our little blog, they could all use another plug.
Daisy House dominated my playlist this year, both their current record and their back catalogue. They channel the 1960s but never let it wholly define them. They have two amazing singers and one fabulously talented songwriter. They deserve all the accolades the internet can hand out. If this were 1970 they’d probably be headlining The Flip Wilson Show tonight. The Rallies were an accidental discovery that turned into an obsession. Their whole album is great but “Don’t Give Up” makes my heart twinge every time. Aimee Mann and Fastball ably demonstrated this year that veterans can still turn out fantastic, career-defining albums. And I got to see both of them live! Los Straightjackets did Nick Lowe proud, producing a phenomenal tribute to his body of work. “Rollers Show” was my go-to summertime happy tune.
I won’t review every selection from the two-four, but I will say that I think the mix of poprock I feature on the blog is evident here. There’s fast and slow, country and rock, guitars and keyboards, etc. And then there’s always the hooks. Case in point: check out the 42 second mark on Greg Kihn’s “The Life I Got.” If you don’t feel the excitement he creates with some classic poprock guitar arpeggiation and the subtle vocal hook you’re kinda missing what we’re doing here. Here’s hoping 2018 is as hit single worthy as this past year has been!
I am going to sneak in an honourable mention for what I consider the compilation of year: 
Talent is breaking out all over and it is relentlessly resynthesizing decades of poprock influences in these contributions, from slacker pop to repurposed 1960s-influenced singles to rehabilitated punk-infused melodies and rock and roll.
Variously described as ‘lesbian garage rock’ or ‘Sackville stoner chicks,’ East Coast-cum-Windsor, Ontario duo Partner actually defy easy categorization. Early songs like “Personal Weekend” and “Hot Knives” were rough, often hilarious, and definitely garage-y. So knock me down when I got wind of their just-released, super slick new record, In Search of Lost Time. This thing is a monster of exquisite playing, deft hooks, and whip-smart wordplay. I don’t even want to select a couple of songs to feature, it’s just too painful trying to choose! “Everybody Knows” is the first single, an obvious choice, and it’s a winner, chock full of great imagery of clueless stoners shopping their brains out in an oh-so straight world. But that would be obvious, wouldn’t it? I prefer to go with the songs that really highlight the duo’s musical subtlety and hooks. Like “Gross Secret,” a mellow number with a nice slow-burn guitar solo. “Angels from Ontario” sounds a bit like a certain kind of off Broadway musical number, before it takes off mid-tune. “Play the Field” and “Creature in the Sun” both have swell melodies while “Remember This” features a knock out guitar solo. There is something decidedly nineties about the overall sound, very Weezer in places, but the vocal blend of the two singers is totally unique. This whole record really is something special.
After featuring the Lund Bros. amazing back catalogue in August, imagine my delight to discover a new solo recording from chief songwriter and vocalist Chris Lund. Great Event Syndrome is self-produced and home-recorded, though you’d never know it from the Abbey Road-like production values. Content-wise the record is maximum ear candy with Lund slipping in all sorts of nods and winks to that classic mid-1960s British Invasion rock and roll sound. It’s all on display on the single-worthy “Tell Me,” from the chunky guitar hooks, to vocals that shift from sounding very Cheap Trick-Robin Zander early on, to something like Rush’s Geddy Lee in a mellow mood, to ever-so-Beatles on the stretched out ‘tonight-t-t-t’ in the chorus. Love the wobbly synth that crops up all over the tune. “What’s Her Name” is another highlight for me, showcasing Lund’s careful attention to vocal arrangements. Though the knee-jerk critics’ reaction is to connect Lund’s style with the Beatles (and on songwriting that is definitely true), vocally he reminds me a lot of Alan Clarke of the Hollies and the harmonies associated with that band. Also check out “The Juice,” where nice acoustic guitar picking combines with some 1960s American west coast vocal stylings to belie the song’s serious subject matter. And this just scratches the surface of this great album.Tell MeWhat’s Her Name?The Juice
The Safes follow a familiar trajectory in band development, from raucus rock and roll origins to a more refined sound as we get closer to the present. “Deception” from 2006’s Well Well Well showcases the fun, almost live feel of their early work. But fast forward to the 2013-16 period and the sound has shifted to more melody and harmony on tracks like “Live Life Like You Want to Live” with its almost plaintive single note piano solo. The basic elements are actually all still there, they’ve just been rejigged in importance, as can be seen from the great rock and roll guitar intro to “I Would Love You,” which also features a distinctive keyboard solo, this time on organ. Which brings us to the present and The Safes’ fabulous new record Tasty Waves. Sounding like a more punky version of Apples in Stereo, the band aces the first single and opening track “Hometown” with its chiming guitar and swinging hookiness. Here comes a serious ear worm infection! The whole album is pretty strong, though I’d single out “Streets and Sanitation” for special mention with its insistent strummy-ness, rumbly lead line and nice horn motifs.
Take some of the 1960s more melodic rock and roll and combine that with a 1990s punk esthetic and you might have Together PANGEA. 2014’s Badilac reinterpreted the Yardbirds’ pop sensibilities as if they were a garage rock act and the results were amazing on the title track and songs like “Offer” and “No Way Out.” Now they’re back with Bulls and Roosters and the creative reinvention of the 1960s continues, this time brilliantly mining Memphis soul on their swinging “Money On It,” though the ragged vocals stamps the tune as suitably garaged-up. Or things seem familiar with the in-your-face punky style on “Better Find Out” until the chorus explodes melodically like a Young Rascals’ single on speed. Run don’t walk to get tickets to these guys. Your dancing shoes will thank you.
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